Distributed computing gets new tool

Platform Computing, a Toronto company, has released new management tools to make use of its distributed computing software more effective. Distributed computing spreads a computational task, such as investigating genetics or searching for prime numbers, across numerous networked computers.

Platform Computing, a Toronto company, has released new management tools to make use of its distributed computing software more effective. Distributed computing spreads a computational task, such as investigating genetics or searching for prime numbers, across numerous networked computers.

The new Platform Analyzer reports how much work different computers are accomplishing and logs factors such as memory utilization, while Platform Explorer analyzes the data gathered by Analyzer. Cereon Genomics, a subsidiary of agriculture giant Monsanto, is among the customers using the software, Platform Computing said. --Stephen Shankland, Special to ZDNet News